พัฒนาการของอักษรไทย

**9 ,CTfc*U A£ W-r. »mt>Ql^^^^B fc^fsu^icJ*^ 1 ^At^/FXS 6^^ 'jy^MJ r#*^*S tin v iiJuiJ?ianY)Mw^wi^lvid'na^luriifi(?i^Tuaan <ija'3iJtsmfi lriEJ uasiiiuamwnviij^nlnalinnanBuvianyi ® f^nlniQuantmias-jTiJ'nru isu w.«. ®a?s<o mavnnaniftatiafmiJfji^a>3Hnvm™wmiawmil wan^ibsliwriuadlmhnaimiviw wawiiJtn£JwnKiiniavi?swnw«?!J'iia«Tii^ntua^«pQ'iEJiriQ'5il Sdok Kok Thorn Temple, situated in Khok Sung District, Sa Kaeo, is the largest ancient Khmer temple in eastern Thailand. It is where the first Sdok Kok Thorn inscription was discovered. The ancient Khmer inscription, dated to 937 AD, states duties of the safeguarder of the divine statue in the temple followed by names of slaves the Khmer kings dedicated to the statue.

*.'3 m m». 'fl^TKifa '£' A*- 3fl *OT isviavn^n'i'siya'j'Da^antu Stone engraving on the wall of Angkor Wat in Cambodia, depicting troops of different ethnic groups which joined the military force of King Jayavarman VII. Among them was troop of the Thai people in Lawo (now Lop Buri) which was then under the rule of Khmer Kingdom.

onuslnej <U IS 1/ naum^in<Fi€u^a<aanmT^mafovT£m,u najjw^iilymllbiw^inun'a^ Thai script was influenced by southern Indian culture, with both Buddhist and Brahmin elements, iiluilnuwrn^vna^ytaailuaa'as iiflSVUiiTEarna tCm^nn&aadm&tliayiswa before the unique Thai alphabet was created. m$m?iSa'3^a>aanEU'i3fmiajj €>3^ 1a>3a°Tun3uas£!?mmmum>3mn na'ami, Some paleographers shared their views on the vm^fia niu ndw^n^iilriEjlvidlli^uiJ^^an^'i^anjI.iJl'Blunniiru^nfii^'i Thai alphabet as follows: v Scripts from the Indian subcontinent were the IvmtvinJ nf)w^w^iiI^unlli^uiJ^N3an^^wanj1»iiHirn <nnrii^i Lri£jn <wtvi'ua first scripts brought into the Southeast Asian region. According to the stone inscriptions (anmrnuvnaanmentala^) nd^'Bu^'iilntja'ivi^lli^uil^^anHiJjanjlill'B discovered, the most popular scripts include the iTuf1mflummi>!j?m'ija>3emi,a>3 ^mneuilmangn'jTfa'h \"anviulii'nuti\" Vila Brahmi alphabet found sometime after 900 BE (357 AD). It was then better known as the Pallava \"BTWUUTIIVM\" alphabet, termed after the Pallava dynasty which s ruled the southern part of India during that period. v This script would later evolve to contain more m?i,1au?iwu5??ijm?i!j!juvm>3aau'u tn^?urTv3n^^n <Bni Ln£jni^ unique characteristics and came to be known as the ancient Mon and Khmer alphabets. These were mmvma ^valliiiJtaiarisvs^i^nsiiJjn'iii.^Ej'uaniiiwanjIij'i'iEuliJHl'un'it eventually developed to become the Thai alphabet. iTurmmmlvifijImu'ma 3iumu^uyii\\Y\\uY}i$mmdi3n\\®imaii<MU5i'2M cna%\\ The Sukhothai Kingdom was established by King Sri Indrathit around 1792 BE (1249 AD). Later VI If in 1826 BE (1283 AD) or the year 1205 of the Shaka era, King Ramkhamhaeng the Great, his ^iuan^'3 <pinei^flnm'3^£jnt1a^'3T3^iN3 6 rTadnaanmn^muasmawfrs vTarnmlria son and the third king, created the ancient Thai ] alphabet called Lai Sue Thai based on the ancient Khmer and Mon scripts. It is assumed that he mmwas mii vs1ati,^n?^^/in^iiiaijnHanM?^ajJija>3aiuti^ri'a^ajj'W'3s;u'Fi'5 adapted the scrawled Khmer alphabet in devising the Lai Sue Thai. mawnib^uuiiluna'NmMnliylm ISfl Since then, the people of the Sukhothai am^n^iu iSaanmnsni^awaw!Jvits;'Ufi -5i,aajja°n ,u'i^a'3'i'ii ,wyispf^'3'3'3H Kingdom were able to pass their accumulated knowledge in various fields on to succeeding ®d v generations, mostly by using the ancient Thai scripts or Lai Sue Thai. na'sj^wijniT,YiijmI^yvia^uwni,Sa>3uasvia , <um'anan>3Vi'i'3 ll)il?nii \"°uau The Lai Sue Thai created by King 5i Ramkhamhaeng the Great in 1826 BE was the first complete Thai alphabet. There are no stone 1 inscriptions or any other Thai scripts discovered v ^a^n^lKna^anun^Tni before this time. This is because Thai people had not yet established their own territory, so they amfltajanjehvw\" w£3a°Tm^iJnfl?a>3i Na<aaI^fffj l> li might not require their own script. Later when they > were able to rule Sukhothai, an alphabet became necessary. , AThai Scripts: 730-Year History 49 sl^mj I^£j^v^a^n«1anri?nfl^ytfluil^wn^1y«Fi?a'3anfun^ n'3aI ,ijrTiiii,as fBaiTy^am^avJaiinuTuiwa^ rf>3 is TBrnsmu f^^an^i^us^w^ifiij TjaNaaisvn^fmiawad vT<3 ,5njiinTnJn |Fna>3 mmwecanisKs

mafia\"m'5nvianvi © ^mnvsaiiur'mfi'mm After King Ramkhamhaeng the Great acceded ^nlmiluaTiwlYiEmvJa^urmflnwmjJvnri'M to the throne, he \"...meditated and created these Thai scripts, therefore the Thai alphabet was mamsihseiiwTm ma w.«. ©^fab in nimo tl created because of the King.\" By adapting the existing ancient Khmer mush and Mon scripts, he invented the first stone inscription to exhibit a model The first inscription of King Ramkhmahaeng the Great who created the Thai alphabet in 1283 AD. alphabet of the Sukhothai kingdo The Thai script used in the eiasn mawzmawr'i^m'mvwNvn'ri'fl wasaw lliYmibsem^armV'lym iSailwvnpfn'aTB ©k)o£ of King Ramkhamhaeng the ( was propagated within the kinc 49 and became the Fak Khaam scri s used in the North of Thailand, and the Thai Noi script used in the Lan Xanc^ ©Cslao Kingdom. Moreover, the ancient Thai script served as the prototype anWlviyvilaaTyialymYma^u^iwfhwvH of Siamese alphabets later used in the Sukhothai, Ayutthaya and v Rattanakosin periods. Even though it shared the writing method with the Tja^via (,iAiinsl§JiJ'5in{]'iTCi«ei'Ts)i1nvi1aaniii lnij Khmer script of the Angkor period, the form of the letters was unique nauamjwa^uinij^'mv! 3 wvn'n'fl ebayi iking and passed down through vianrmluflgn^nlnviarm © muri <^ em^ri generations until the pres \"...L^anauemj^alniiuiJ^ ®iao<? fin lis-izua-i wavmiufiiumviilmfoluh ualei 9 aiuaainuu aiuaalnuu^^maiiu^uu uni'nm^mwri'uii siyialriyvi1aany''a v Lyi£j'n'wa <, <u'3iw ifiiiJ i,'HN3wvii-5i oB u <u rmih^imsnm 'Fi^lliai^anM'a'nl'Sad^jjlusiaTijalTjyr&j la an^iijawlii^nut =is <U 9 iiasan^wBtyTimmiflumiuiJi! an^ilri£ja^£JVNa^u^n§j^TUViN3WViniT^lliiijria^liJHlu^li?jaimT^n'3 ncnmQuaniKaiJIn^iaviUunm^^ lu^n£janm^n^a^5av3ff1a^uifmvi^ghu4hN3 uan^nnivu ImiluliuwiiiiTjava <i ahisKjamu l^uft^abriLi n^matisin' uasn^ffluLnauYn u^s:£iah <ims i,vi5auani*i^aNa£mmsuA'3 u^iiluiiiiari^'3ir>3 ifi^f'nMiupis;aijyia(?i3JT5)'unv3 imim A50 Thai Scripts: 730-Year History



& •-•>. - ^J 5 far? * rtwfcy *=»i&V .-5Sa«<jjijg- isiiruaaN lijaflfllamnati uminm'jauuujnu'jn u^suluimlEnmjtfihnnfltuflansnlnviaTm « shuri k> ylna'mli'jnlvitlwvnwn'snf stood flws-anii in.pi. c»riinee wafluriNflnuvMmnriijIibsiinlh«i \"...Iviiimsnmzsiman nmsntiwu mzrfwv'ivniraurimzsnwl.Piiwauwriyu Chang Lorn Temple in the city of Si Satchanalai, believed to be the temple mentioned on the nd side of the first inscription of King Ramkhamhaeng 2 the Great, which describes the construction of a stupa at the city center to house Buddha relics in 1286 AD.

onuslnejauEjalbnej The Thai oLS J the Sukhothai mmiMya3mm\\Y)mum\\°ni\\uuu gna^mLiNiiluafili) ^au Period <s>. onuslnaauawouusiuriiiinournsiB After King Ramkhamhaeng the Great acceded to the throne, he created the Thai script that was > the original form of the Siamese alphabets of later generations. Development of the Thai alphabet in uni^nnniauitamvmau uanwil'n£jgi§T£j'iAla oiJU'iiiJ |fi 'ii,tviN3WVii'3i o < the Sukhothai period can be divided into two IIai^lliliutmii§>ii^irianw'3 ,,uajjIij'3imi,i,eis;ariM?j4anjIii^iEu uai'wwvmuria'm stages as follows: a/ V Thai script in the reign of King NniOuaVm'sTnEj ^ibnn/Auwan^nln'Hsfrm © •StftfluviansnucriflnjiWlwfh'u Ramkhamhaeng the Great ibsiwiaeii ^i^minitjvia^a^rnmyininsiiimiiilnfna^ wiwfn^ pram Scholars believe the first Thai script in the King leuusnu ^uijsramvmwihswrileh'a 6 uecI^mavn^nuaniKipraeif ^ma^ Ramkhamhaeng the Great period was derived from ) the ancient Khmer and Mon alphabets. This v ancient Thai script as found on the first stone l ,wt tHunv3a'n^j?i5 otjav3/ini2Fi lyi£jwnuani^'5ln?j ^waimini^u.w^vm'i'BtliYnva inscription was composed of: ibsfm^ju efamiaasiaaeieiaT.il'u 1.1 A total of 39 consonants which are n u 5Ju^i?uiYisuuiJfjfJiNvl/ijjfi'jai?iwavi was a aiwifjhjmc ©.la S?\" jKlUTU lao ill lHuH 61 IS \" 1 nuII, a 1 \\ snrfiCtailil'niSNvierm'nJ fia °i u tt-s t \"*ij l ^a *i i-a i-n wiai-ivra'ssviS liwpJvj^nNU'sa'jflwsivi and a. xu «n «u a mz Va, mzvisriEmJfia er^s; t v> (a, \"ti, \"uu) i ^a ( Vaa,) °i (-1, -11) vr and a are the five consonants that did not exist ©.en Tnivmnei 3I is ill fjalman uasl&Tvi then. A total of 20 vowels which are 12 single 1.2 vowels: t n t I a 1 1, and eight diphthongs: °i u u-s i \"v i *a \"1 1-0 i-l. There also existed vowels with variant forms: 1 \"v (a, \"v, \"vv), i*a (\"Va, 'Vaa), and *i (-1, -11); 1.3 Two tonal marks: \"ri\" (mai ek) and \"ft\" (mai tho); 1.4 A total of six digits: © (1), is (2), a? (4), £ o(5), erf (7), and (0). AThai Scripts: 730-Year History 53

The ancient Thai alphabet in the reign of King mughffnj$nuanu -nslunn?i!ia'u Ramkhamhaeng the Great exhibited distinctive a/ writing methods as follows: insuanei SLS 1 There were four types of letter: consonants, vowels, digits, and tonal marks <L/ 2. Consonants, vowels and digits had the en. yjmymi£$mwT>4jahi=i'3 is en ifaan^fnmiscaniirTun wmymc$unii same size, written on the same line, while tonal marks were placed above consonants mzQi EnsmjiAirniimclm aisibsaaM wu ^\"aaniicnaa rmavimuSucraaaa 3. Initial consonants composed of two letters fliasn^niienenN arm? is enefanaiTu ffneuTjauflaLua^rm iiluwiwvinu — be it a cluster or leading consonants; an initial diuanwam^ammnTinrm Lim geu<©3 = tfia>3 consonant and the \"-i\" (pronounced aa) vowel; a <s!.. \\%®iwt}iu°tiuz etiieti$&umi \"anmvru\" ttnutiD>3^'3^as; <n^an^'3 <u'u 6 vowel and an initial consonant; diphthongs such as ) \"ilia\" (pronounced uea) which is a combination of \"aa\" (pronounced ue) and \"-\")\"; final consonant and iilwrassnei ivinniiHanw^Mutmul^uannn^nij^rieisn^ nm slAJT = im the consonant that follows the final consonant, were written one after another as single set, while GQlAU = fTU other letters were written separately. @© = T?a <grj = w uu = *wa @© = fa 4. Double consonants called a \"nan letter\" were used to replace the \"-z\" (pronounced a) wuv vowel with such letters as the final consonant. This is like using the \"nan letter\" instead of the \"n\" b. srasaa aa bTtaienaa vowel form and a final consonant. nl. I 5. The vowels'* (i), \" (ii), \" (ue), (u), and ^ QJljtfgJ = m£j (uu) were placed in front of the initial consonant. 141 a uvmens: \"ai, iSaCienscne) nruSEJ3 = tfim 3JD = tii^ acuBS = tSa 6. The form \"a\" in the vowel \"-a\" Hd (pronounced or) and the vowel \"aa\" (pronounced d. *aa umvuem^'n: i a iNalaJflenGrcnei l°ou ue) was omitted. If '\"'a unuii£j>3^s i *a iNaSenasnA L°au acuC3 = t^a>3 7. The form \" \"titi\" was used to represent the vowel \"i \"ti\" (pronounced ia) when there was no wu©;. I'S'U'pi^^ immfifj'as'as °i ij'CSS = iruia final consonant. ®o. Ife^aaluin^'i iim QK^tPU W^QinsiJ = alauYinrtagj The form \"ti\" (pronounced y) was used to represent the vowel \"t \"ti\" when it was followed by a final consonant. 8. The form \" \"aa\" was used to represent the vowel sound \"i \"a\" (pronounced uea) when there was no final consonant. The form \" \"a\" was used to represent the vowel sound \"i \"a\" when it was followed by a final consonant. 9. The anusvara ( ' ) was used to represent the vowel sound \"V (pronounced am). 10. There existed the use of independent vowels (vowels that can stand alone and have their own complete sound) in some words. A54 Thai Scripts: 730-Year History

fmwh^aiJringvianjnuVuflan^nlnviahyi e> Ihuyi io \"...nai^ma^ahribu ufivm umzwnsijiJnByi SmzaQfrsft...\" Phra Attharot, a huge standing Buddha statue enshrined in Mahathat Temple in Sukhothai, was mentioned in the nd side of the first inscription of King Ramkhamhaeng the Great. 2

Disnwoqusiumimo usannoiunsovJuiHoIan jnflnfmwm^'mvNTafi i,flmmu>nuYia<3mmflnin insnfnam ua£i^u5T5mivi>3aviib::''tn ,inei (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) Vila amain (UNESCO) rinvmeiTJUifla Yi.fi. telenet Ifla*1iennib::a>3fli,vlam?au?nmi,a::iwmi,m v lsJ'in^s;iiluni'3iru ,nn lilu'3iluiiiil.^vi1a oua>3il /3s;i,riP(T,^n^iw raiiilhwwa^ittfl^sjflw fin«? ua ibzaunTnu ^anijn^fi^^anHmu^fiiiwvt^nvianyluli'iuTki'UB^jj ^nna<3Pi34uaftaT,mina>3f)NiT^mi u>a 6 ma'n'=)^iiiei'i ,uei<3^aHi,i,na-3^jj lua ,un iFi^ ^nlnvia'imrmfhu.vM iilusnlnvsana^flnj^a^ibsmWlvia uadlmjn'n ^nda>3ini.ilui^mfilt1a>3uin^a>3l,Yi£j^iTu^nBtiluan£jan^ma1ii^3 u^muafm^iamvl^ ®ia<^ imrfa weilli II v tfur1m1a>nniy1ij1inmln^mAnYn>n^inniviaiEjai ,in ifaT.ulhinifipriaeif ifepnaeif Lffsi^ns a>3<Fiu ibsieipnaei? fjw^fnam minpnafl's iTasufiei maun was^meiibsmut fimsnlmjrn? wiJlnwnuiunTnfi'iia'aa'ammflnin ivmiflnam u.asiwusrsmivtaaviibs'in'infl ^3ibswnu?::vm>3Tufi Isd-eno aWlflN IsxSteb' IU lb: ^ ^>3wwlawijaum£lwi,anaw'inl'w5wvisiiia'u snlnwa^urijj'fhuv^ iflumflnfmwm^iuvtalari. ft

Jin; k f»jii! i Lv.-i f TZtc I nitU United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Wffix OF inawtfa«ij?a$niti3um®n¥ni8jm'Hi uvUTamiaOTan^nlnvJaTOrwrhuvi'S 091X3 HEWBD ,xnu 3U<3. Certificate of the Memory of the World Certifies the inscription of dG)3 una* Register issued for the inscription of King the Kjng 'Ram %fiamhaena Inscription (2©L Ramkhamhaeng the Great. (STUD 'ran OOP(. National Museum ©a en Vtl %}na£om ofThailand )raa Inscription of King Ramkhamhaeng the Great - The Memory of the World the Memory of the World Register n The Memory of the World Program is an 1 6 OCT 2003 ^T^^Z tDdXJU initiative of the United Nations Educational, Koichiro Matsuura LODO Director-General, UNESCO Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) .PUlf] which was launched in 1992 with aim of preserving in wctnlt* hupywww iiuico oriAvebworid Click on th« la$t> \"Memory of ihe world' dov and promoting documentary heritage of humanity, regardless of its form and nationality. The material is required to convey thoughts, knowledge and experience of the ancient people to the present world. A patrimony of Thailand, the inscription of King Ramkhamhaeng the Great is regarded as the first written literature of the country. Its 124 lines incorporates valuable information in multidisciplinary fields from laws, political science, economics, sociology, history, geography, linguistics, literature, religion to tradition. For this reason, the UNESCO's International Advisory Committee reached an agreement to list the inscription on its Memory of the World Register at its conference in Poland from 28-30 August 2003. AThai Script : 730-year History 57

Thai alphabet in the reign of King Lithai to. onuslnaauawsatfialn In the reign of King Lithai, the fifth king of the wimaaYfjvtasmiflvi wm^iilauuuila^siiuani^l.YiEjanm'a wcwl$mvd~i Sukhothai Kingdom, the Thai alphabetic system a1ni^T.yifja^£Jvia^u^Tw^niivi>3«viT?niiu;u l^milualn^yn^n'Brn'aii.a's u^inilyitJ was changed. The Thai alphabet created by King Ramkhamhaeng the Great was stipulated as the TflfjifoliJfrau&sjHan^isimi^ official language. However, common Thais wifnjmc LLcoSwmismnem an^^is^3T?jiAia^ <u?iw i ii,i,viN3^vin'3iwuna'3S^af£j remained attached to the writing style of the Pi ancient Khmer or Mon scripts, which placed vowels both above and below consonants. It is also yawim iv^^T^^i,^£j5uniinniH^s^jJuiiijani*^a«uasani*i3janj ma^sin noteworthy that the use of independent vowels might not be very well accepted by commoners, LflaHGnnaimanjmcw'm'm tiasT,u^mstlyinunLNa''iuprw^fyiiilufi'ii*niini since they were more familiar with the vowels that needed an initial consonant, such as those in the Khmer and Mon scripts. In addition, when reading LViwauali^issaY^waTOinwtfnuviNawvnri'H ^flnliJa^^in Pali scriptures written in Khmer script, it was an^ilrifj'niJ'ain^l'uliein^ilnawfj'iAii^t^iilyi ^CirmiilllEmwila^siJii difficult for them to switch to King Ramkhamhaeng the Great's writing style in which vowels and armis Iflf-jnaiilillmvmavian^ifta^ consonants were on the same line. an trivia awawawriNfrmvi^vnT'i'H w^nnvi^n^TU'niSn The writing method of the Thai alphabet used during the King Lithai period was again flen^nlnaimw'asmaTn wim Swmumc m<^ ill changed back to resemble that of the Khmer and Mon scripts. It replaced King mwaqjwsvTlwibinjilia oj yi w ww ghviens: Ramkhamhaeng the Great's ancien I .' w isis ill Ha as ai a a a a a la wa las la aa Thai script as the official alphabet. The tay i.aa ai taa f| r\\ ai la la tan uasiim^ King Lithai alphabet comprised 38 i J&.-V- consonants. Five consonants that did ' i'ua i n Taimnn^ £ is ill H a iTamanmanu.as'araai.EjneiTyi r/.^'s anot exist are si 11 si tu and vr. 4™fariu, Fiai\\)isnnanri on oisnunsuu89* i There were 22 vowel forms, which are muani*msflianfcmiasan ,iir3S ziaa a aai a tan i-a a ®. ImMmsT^^i^awianiKS tmil'uiJ'u laa q /] a'l 1 1 i-l. Two tonal marks iiiiuui' vi.\"V ;' were \"mai ek\" and \"mai tho\". The Hi-ariajjwuiviwaui.^^ ^ai.viSaunijanwilviy scripts and writing method shown on swawamriNfhu.vNJjvnri'fl 2§i§ ' . \"..- ' - -- ,i cyj ;:siui._, the third stone inscription of the King j- v Zrr-' ifgsivifivli ' Lithai's Nakhon Chum inscriptions are as follows: B91HWVir • P .'>•.'.. J^'wiiu: is. iiJam^nu^aswLnj^usuflnfln'an'uihtf 1. The forms of the alphabet still '\"\"d the curvilinear style that is iJ ; ' i»q SucsoiSSKiu rv. v'-;-rt'S«.i itjT8ijui<. similar to the ancient Thai alphabet in ui'utjikjiusiBw'JOia-.i 5uflumjjj|«a>.'.n\\wi mwi iw ^ u(n) CU (aj) (w) 'loAut/.-tCiiiS'^':: (s) the reign of King Ramkhamhaeng the ' noaStOKH Great. amcg»£u cijmfi 3 Cu : ra . anws'sfoeiiWf a s$q!TO» 2. Some consonants had different lOTUliC-Ttia \\N1I'MTVi ,W5S1I'5W315I lilaflUflTBN qMiiliuwa^Iunfu dfouuaETUivmvi ^SVIQari'lU'N^lVIVS The na stele of Nakhon Chum Inscriptions (partial) 2 A58 Thai Scripts: 730-Year History found at Phra Borom That Temple, an ancient city of the Nakhon Chum, currently in Kamphaeng Phet Province.

l*» \">£' :** *.SSr «r %' / :«, •*> lira 1'umnnneimsii'JNE'iei a^i/iaiNa-a ^avnamummWluiMiju Aerial photograph of the Nakhon Chum city where Phra Borom That Temple, the site of the third inscription of Nakhon Chum, is situated. The temple is now in Mueang District, Kamphaeng Phet Province. The inscription mentions many royal functions of King Lithai of Sukhothai including the creation of stone inscriptions.

0?W^« **>> ^ i^~ tori r*n M S? ' -;• i• ., CC3£j©5?t> r*\"*/- ' >.' -• - Wi ^t*n^^9^Lt^- J?f f •^•<flW it-;. .•« -^ «. 4\" uas:j1na'nQjktu^n?nTeiihNs:ih<3 Pa Mamuang Temple in the vicinity of Sukhothai is where King Lithai stayed during his monkhood, this was mentioned in the Pa Mamuang Temple inscriptions.

en. ensiimiasensen^yN b ®i ImiJaauiiJsmriumalmviNnsnijrnrrw 3. The forms of all six vowels placed above vu\\,\\,e\\zdi3wvvu°tiuz<?\\u \\x®z&iz\\ii$$\\ifei}®MSiiu&wiiwusu aiiuz limn la la la and below consonants were modified to suit their Ha in^iJensliiaij^iv^ojmclm ivtSauah^tlviEj^wfjif^^im positions. Some vowels, such as 1 T, I, are taller than consonants and are placed around &°> ens a, a consonants like those used in the current Thai <^> ens a, aa alphabet. aisa j> ensa Vowels a, a (i, ii) Vowels a, aa j) (short ue, long ue) j^ s mslas ^_ gnsla Vowel a (u) Vowel a (uu) p«g ensla ~c- ensla Vowel I-s (short o) Vowel I- (long o) Vowel 1- (ai) s^. ensvunilensUwa en ihsemaa ^siilaaimJinva 1mm VVowel (ai) 4. For vowels of which forms have those in 3. [_<y ensiaa as component, their forms were changed. CD \"* Vowel laa (ia) - <xi ensiaa Vowel taa (uea) I Vowel i-a (oe) £ -£3 ensiaa a7 S?ilei^^aiJti,iJiian^?lri^a3TLivJa^n?i^^iuviN3wvi'i'3i oailsiluadiJi>3 Ha 5. There also existed the use of independent . vowels of the King Ramkhamhaeng the Great a a a aa uasiaa ^mewlvu'W'uii isiJiJenssaT^wamri^'uiviwvn'n^ SVLtj period. They were a (i), (ii), (short ue), a (long ue) and laa (oe). This means vowel system of the aeJirN uuHa i^aw^inw^ni>ilu^lia'a^£jumyii.aEj>3ei'3\"advi ,un (?in wenuiJnetast'iJ a King Ramkhamhaeng the Great period was still in u II use. Where normally a was used as an initial consonant, some stone inscriptions showed the wuiiluwfjhjmislm t^^^i^i1na^^i^i^nilYiiin'3VieTn^l<S?i'3j;^a?jiJsiluad ow *3 o-» i-l an (Tnmflfnw) use of independent vowels instead. 6. There existed two consonant-like vowels GfUU@uSb~ auaula (^ilrmmw) which are q and f\\. 7. There were two tonal marks, which are the OCS^CU itjoj (^ilniVi'vnsij'u) same as those used in the King Ramkhamhaeng %y§y$F&D 3™$ (Tnrneivnsiiu) the Great period. * \" (mai tho) \" ' \" (mai ek) \" b. Sensifm is ®i Ha q uas /] efavi ei/. Cbnottinei is ill Ha iTamanmanucciTnufjn^Im eTnMusAen^f^nii Qrsmanfla&ma^uriaj?hiivi>aiJvi'nTfl I Trsfuanman + iTaJUtinsnTyi a AThai Scripts: 730-Year History 61

The Thai onuslraaumsofisoGsm the A) a'nawlaamfhwirnwnsijflyi @ ugcSennm^nj^tlasfmiiufheiij T.wii^i.il'u Period <u <\" i Established around 1893 BE (1350 AD) IhmmwH 'priGmT wlafiaili&ms'njj fi^ilil^mwni'a^i.i.Pi^an^ifn^^i according to the royal annals of the Ayutthaya adi^linenu mwlaysmvnlmh^imwiwfulmaNa u^fmanikmsT?^ Kingdom by King U Thong or King Ramathibodi I, the Ayutthaya kingdom was a prosperous kingdom ehuanmma^nnaTmi^n^T^vm fia an^Vlvma&JWsmalY) ffhwiHlu with flourishing religion, arts and culture, in particular literature. The Ayutthaya Kingdom did not diEjaTcvrRm wei <nuctfiEnn ,u i^ns^jj^a^Iii^imn^il^Tn/jaiil'u^lTij'piiau^m create its own scripts even after it had been IJa&aHani^^ajjlunTtiTu^n^ established for a long time. The kingdom inherited ii§hmuanwlYiaatfam>amaasa™l^^ i its literary culture from the Sukhothai Kingdom, that is the ancient Thai alphabet of the King Lithai's tiJimijalnifithalTbiluiJiJilsnn^ ^ijj^anij'sisau 6 Iraa '] reign. At the same time, the influence of ancient HI 11 Khmer culture was evident in religious affairs. The if i Khmer alphabet was used in recording Buddhist teachings and other academic books. I^£j?ilam^in^aN3anHinnlli^wnlil^^^ua£j^ < iJwi\"^ wee The Thai alphabet inherited from the Sukhothai ui,3'u^iJrii>3i,vii£j3si Kingdom maintained the same forms and writing method as those of the Thai script in the King vfnjjjj ^NaiJiinfit^uwwin^a^l'u^iTEJ^wtl^iAi'j^ui^iiJai^vi'i'aT'W uasaVmi Lithai's reign. However, the alphabet forms were 1 <M gradually developed and eventually became a q variant with polygonal shapes, straight lines and angles. These evolved forms emerged distinctively 1/ in the reign of King Narai the Great. They became the model of the Thai alphabet used by the ahmvcvi llii,£lnlimmij^a>3anM^T viyaii^ajjTn>3aay£jm'afViuIn^'uvif TraarmVlym ) following generations to the Rattanakosin period. The development of the Thai alphabet is distinct in aaT£jn'5>3ma!JS!j'il^i5iTWjunn'T?Lflu is ej«fi Ha an^TnEJswan^maasenflawm the periods of early Ayutthaya and late Ayutthaya. q<, q qq UGcanwlYiyG^mw1a£jsin^auil6n£j A62 Thai Scripts: 730-Year History

&,-s-' mm erlaafisn i5!luriifsiuw5fmm^1nn<ii1sa<avi6n£jehu iilu «nuw, .5 msmiasfninsjmjirrwn'a Ayutthaya, the glorious capital of the Siamese in the 1 4th century. Royal correspondence from King Ekathotsarot to the Portuguese reveals that the city forged ties and traded with the many western nations.

'if I J5fc*/ -\"' H«MMW_^^^^_ \"* ~* iwaiJ?n>3^iltsBiumrian£ja^luawtJwt£ijnr)awili^vN^sij>3n{)inaimaair3 fflfnayi b NrnTwimTrmwuSiin \"ssu w.«. «ee«>io Maha That Temple in Ayutthaya was constructed in 1374 AD in the reign of King Borom Rajadhiraj I (Khun Luang Pha-ngua). Following the collapse of its pagoda in the reign of King Rama VI, inscribed tin plates of early Ayutthaya Period were found inside.

it<§>. ohuslnaauansofisoasainounu The Thai alphabet in the early Ayutthaya Id gnu am em' a a vnawn iiluKu t^vnntSnia^'Fi^Yi'ufmi aiiAvtd^mwnD'u period snuvrs~wvisD'<n*4i imwia^ uwnliin tfluKu In the early Ayutthaya period, some consonant ^il^m^inan^-3lYi^eiaT£jn'3>3 iFt1aiJS£ji^a'uli ut <uu D^enan^mD'uAJDueiriei'-N letters had different forms from those in the reign of anttVtvma&Jvnsi.Tia'lyi aliD^lvi^&jmwtatJsmeiaulm King Lithai of Sukhothai Kingdom. However, most remained similar. n <n <n Vowel forms at the beginning of the Ayutthaya ^s \"5 period were not much different from those in the sa s reign of King Lithai. A slight change was made a& o from curved to oval shapes, which began to be developed into polygons as those vowels used in aiviiiJiiluiJiJ^ffaj^nslna^mNamaiJSEjn^au^n'Cm ^meml^ wwanwwu the reign of King Narai the Great. <n i an i^srm^ eiaa-n flftaanmD'uantttenLVifmmnaDYinen uasw In this period, there were two forms of tonal marks, \"ri\" (mai ek) and \"n\"(mai tho). The forms of anmcvfrnvia^ iiafcijj?ia'\"marm43 <flajj fhu^D'grsduaimn^prlasjsin these two tonal marks became more similar to those used in the present time: the cross mark no just longer represented the first and the second tonal marks as it had in the Sukhothai period. Nonetheless, the usage of tonal marks in this era was not consistent. The repeat symbol of Thai writing system represented by i was also found in the early W(3^Bpfjf^^ Ayvutthayva period, in the Song Khob ISijfmilafjwnrm^naj-jam jjitflnn^l uecilNweuunnntiDum^viimNeN Inscription in WW / \"#rf»$$$wSo ^\"lu^§T!ja^(,I^^^W1?1!JfU^VI1'3l ,,tfGflVlf lJ'3lJl'a'afU£jn^ 5 Is -ail la ,, iTamaneuanwasnTSfuaneiTyi ueil$Nnn?LD fiEmuD'§mD u^D'm>alnail!j>3 V mjD'^imjJinTj'u u®nntKi?m?jnfllusN£man^slsJaiJ'niaNaD'i<3 v m^xDiNam^niiiixaliYmffnjmcemDiNS in>a lTr1§ns:ih>3 uasYmDlua&j a/ n^maqsmeiaulmu la v («]) wDtwIcn^nlniVida^D t iFi'?a^ <M^i£j L^j£j*>in 4/ ^®W^>^imUfa,H ISEig£lBgBuWT» warna-ami ^^p'tin p&vn cxfrs cb^ yo ^nlnuluanwliiEja&jniwIatJBmeiauei'u AThai Scripts: 730-Year History 65 d-ssNnniTBnnaam^msjTHSJfm Tin plate inscription at Maha That Temple, Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Province, inscribed in the Thai language of early Ayutthaya period.

The Thai alphabet im. onuslnaauansonsoasmnouilaia in the late Ayutthaya period ani^lyi£j6WLimN3ma£js£ji^auiJGn£jllm^ In the late Ayutthaya period, the forms of the mwiivwnuz mz tta sirs sua nei I^£nilamrimja^mij^usli^^n^ma£JS£n consonants, vowels and tonal marks became more similar to those used in the present time. The ii %/ consonant letters were in polygonal, straight and angled patterns. Sometimes, angles were reduced #nilcnmlmahm aT^^wafmnai^iw uGwanmcflananijnn?i!j£marm'3 and ends of lines were sharply bent. This may have been for decorative purposes; in some ways the 3ijaajui'33v3Vi1aan^'a <,uaw-=n1n I^^ < <niJfiJtiJ§iJULQu'3iJ^'fu^'i <uT,n^t^!jv3 result was similar to the neat written Khmer or inscibed Khmer alphabets. The forms of those vN£j'aj'Bus: consonants that were altered and became closer to those used in the present time are s u and a. ifa^im fia s a a V ani^asTEjn^maasEnflawm The forms of vowel letters used in this period an^3 Lyi£jS3T£ja^t^vN'3S'ui'3iiJfuwvin'5n ,, were adjusted to take on polygonal shapes similar 5 to to almost all of those of the Khmer alphabet. Tall o vowels had long tails to be compatible with those rt of the consonants. There were four forms of tonal marks: mai ek, ao so mai tho, mai tri, and mai chattawa, like those d^uiiJ^mriu^a>3a?duawyn^^aEJS£jn^auiJ9nyvi',u ^ilfmfiuvii'ai.viimu currently used. The writing method was the same as that in the reign of King Lithai and the early i/wSauanttTiiamnaimnfl'3 ni^l<BVN^aj oQus la en ^^t^tiui^awiflu^tlinfru Ayutthaya period. q a/ uat;'VNirai <H'usn'ii?i?siJi>3^^is^£jv(,i,^aw^an u< u^siAiunAiS'nj^'us 91 a enviensS iilmNseNUGcCivn^ii Lwal#saflflaa>3nijwa—nj^usvmiauvn>3£ni€'u was^u SJ HJ ^m&^vwimi^ f\\Q \\u\\®?\\ rt anjihsmpi \" \") enlri (©) Xnimi mawviii () ( m(o-) fmwi axlas: \\>mz i,aas () LiaswusisiwuTm iaa~ anvifiitili^mynmnawym^^laysyT^au^^a'unan'an^^auil^Ty 5 ^ ill V1 V 11 Ha Q-ncuanman i-nman^Tn incuanmnl iiasiimaneRVm I^ejT.u^hu S SS 9 a n in i situ ^z\\,v\\i\\Qunisiinw%\\Y\\t}&fitiw^zi%ia\\Y)\\,\\,Qz&ftt}r\\'3'$<i!\\^t]u$t}i eiawm A66 Thai Scripts: 730-Year History

1 J^ i' 1/ /=>/ I i cl 1/ %> ' i 3 . -c y e/j^m*^^;JW»• ru)tffL#r>rfiJfff wm//^n/€/^ a, ^<=a if lift msaiJflfliriuwufi'&ahiKU ssutly!a?n^ iwa ^smnnif ®®eo villa w.pi. toiooi® waalu^tirnnaametamswnadmmNTrifi awDm^pilausinsiauilan!] The textbook on elephant characteristics mentions its writing in 1 748, which falls in the reign of King Borommakot in late Ayutthaya Period.

<fjW/)W/rrW/T>A/ff7?A/f>W//)S' WftfJW / Sz/rT?/>zfft>rffr?£rtss?fr ///7/77?a//7 wwTiMn?«viwijnyiai4ia^mwa^a»Jinanwnadvrj ramafj * anaNaanamMU anWlyiaa»Hn?*?emInauyi? Royal speech of King Rama V written by a royal scribe, an example of the Thai alphabet in the Rattanakosin Period.

oniislnejauejnsDSGulnauns m^ulnsmyiflliriafl'aiju iSa w.pi. lamias' TflEJvnsinyiamGHmsvms ssftalwsNmvh'U'i iua^TnLhal1fmGWflriNa£Jih>3 uflnt.ilmwEj'ansriau 6 laJCtaiUa ) yiVl#ihm5a^£taii^6^ima3m<em msa>a^>3m>3w&TEnNrhuim'aiun ,uma>3 wrwis&jaflfln^vriTanNvnri'fl fwiari © su^aaaTijmnjnvismffovnrftuna'\"! Rattanakosin city was established in 2325 BE (1782 AD) by King Buddha Yod Fa Chulalok the madvn iBma^ m ^^lijria^'5iJi,LiiiianM'3lyiu?i3Tun?>3 iFt1a£J5yi^a <uiJpn?j Great (King Rama I), with its central area on the mwuvwvuz mz iiiEuun^t nun'aanims TflaljJfirmi,iJfm'ui,i,ila>3 ^lisa^ east side of the Chao Phraya River. Hwu^^anH?lYlylli <lA^w <U1^l^un^3'i^u?lWll'5m^,^w^ ri«°iuwanyi \"ailauuiu The arts and culture of the Rattanakosin period were inherited from the late Ayutthaya period. The / alphabet from the Ayutthaya period was used for communications and recording state events in the arm's wecisimn'mTJEm ^n^i3>ii^ri^tiluvili n'l <uni < <wa£in>3i,linn <uadiN3 Rattanakosin Kingdom. The Khmer alphabet was still used for recording Buddhist teachings and 5i,^!j academic books. The development of the alphapet was as follows: stomal m y^ma Writing method and features of the consonants, vV vowels and tonal marks in the early Rattanakosin period were influenced by those of the Ayutthaya a£h'3 tanena4 ani^'3 Lr)!ja3y£jn'3N3fVi ,uIni ,uyi^aultu ujw^siuvia^^n^inawEj period as shown below: m^mafjsai^auiJcnmSuai'ulvid u^iilam^Tuust;i,^uaniiiai^S'pniwi>^n^i>3 Forms of the consonant letters in the a/ «U qq et9 Rattanakosin period varied according to scriveners' handwriting. Unlike those in the Ayutthaya period, n'uliJ^'ijjpiisjSai.t^^'Fiin^ei'i'pfnj^a^i.anan'i nni,ii'ui,an§mvn>a'n'Hfm i^u long tails were eliminated and they were not much ms'n'tJGnau ngviwrn vilaibsmpiem 6 gnijSavila'siJan^rinjaNaan^'a^il italicized. Some consonants were written vertically ) straight. There were a total of 44 consonants, the same as those in the late Ayutthaya period. fmnihsmei ^(^\"m in^Santtaciernvn^ ma^fllmau^nrnviSaua^imtvia a&jn^maaszneia'uiJsriti maaYam^nlniium^awm JmuQUwanjmcmiJVN s^ i/Mvufiinmj anmmaaNan'33ma£js&TflauiJ6n£j an^aSni'anjfimlwNCfnjmc is $\\i L^a^eia if eiamJaiij uarmfm v ^iJ^nn{]ni?l^iJ^Crqj^n^i^Tjav3anM^awi,LriuanM'? lriij T.um'ailyu'Fi'i'njjn^nrifn^nina €<urh vwijwn til urn rl 5 <?ii % &zn® uasSen uj a/ AThai Scripts: 730-Year History 69

According to \"Jindamanee\", the first grammar book of the Thai language, 32 vowel forms were q found in this period, the same as those in the nwmmiHaiaiasuuuuwu^nnun ifam'aT,4$'w£fnj ,Hus wifnj'ff'ussisnei Ayutthaya period. Nonetheless, some differences QJ OS resulted from the handwriting styles, whether ^nnv finilsjinuuwt^EJul.uvi'untlgJinu ill Annans scrawled or neat. ^ns~jt^iiN3 n, lli3ui,2 <UGfn <Frnj There were four tonal marks. The form of the tlaufln^fYu u^ ifia ut <!jiv3S |Fiiiwi!mua'Ujjirinin?i3yfijn'5N3 ,?i1afj5&ji \"mai ek\" has been represented by a short vertical \"aliens luawani^iflulnsumflauem 5 mis ill iuiua^uT^aueiaavm line ( ' ) ever since the Sukhothai period while the mzn\"as3ma£jsLin^auiJ^n£j u^sSiiJ&Tm^Tul§Ji,k^n^i>3^nni,^3ViJjin <un uei \\\\ \"mai tho\", which was formerly represented by the qq qj ds cross (+), was changed into the currrently used if v V form ( ) in 1942 BE (1399 AD). Evidence of the \\mz X ,U£J3MI.^£JUI.eluvn>a'l,M£JT3^U LllYn>3llTUllU use of the \"mai tri\" (\"), the third tonal mark, was found in a letter from Phra Maha Yotha to iibramun^ a&jm^ifluTnsuviiflawm Urnim-a s^ \"ail TflsnraEvmnman Ubakong, his nephew\" in 2346 BE (1803 AD); and qj q q qj q the \"mai chattawa\" ( or the fourth tonal mark, 1 \"S \"a iJ t lit rTu niJ-finriun^rvau^s a?j ii rT?j iiitutinflEn Hiilanwiiviwausmj qj <*J q s qj *) if i if^Him diuii-am^n^luGC^iiim vniintlaMT.'BluawEjn'a^^uInauvii w£ni was found being used in the \"Royal letter to Yuan ss^iiiil^imEjn^T^Ef^luvivwial'u^TiJiu aiTija&Jsm^msmadifomNTnpi on Politics in Vientiane and the Accounts on Ong mu^unarmivim fi'Pna^i'n^TaLi en. iliaem wii tiluKu tauaii ^uenuui as Chiang Sue\" in 2337 BE (1794 AD). With the flourishing of trade with western countries in the reign of King Rama III, many westerners including merchants and missionaries nniwimanrmmilTmimanflflTl'u \" <wvT^ia ,waSfinaMvnTEJSTi1^aiiina>3wvifiiw\" settled down in Thailand. They were proficient in Thai language to communicate and propagate religious belief. There was the attempt to publish (,1fU>3^Un <Ull.^SI,1av3a>3W!J>36la\" YiM. lamsneil Bible and other religious manuscript in Thai, in 1796, catholic priest established a printing house in v the Kudi Chine area. The manuscripts were printed ^niwsiu^ntlwtiinavinlin^nyti.as^fiSanmnlwil'astii^lYifiJwnnfvi leimawisnaw using Roman script fonts. In 1828, Capt. James Low wrote a Thai grammar book entitled \"A wa^iwasfliJ^uuil^iionsiuein ^fln^SfmjJWEnfnNw^finttnanWlrm Grammar of the Thai or Siamese Language\" ,v ^uen3jn?fia Tuu9si,^!JU l^adi'3i,t^nvnu LwafmNasflinlumiflflflaiaeniiigc published in Calcutta, India. Iflm&wxmiiwmiwmawns'un ^mnni^n^i^^fliim^iilnaimij Tmiwivia'iEj aanlillviivanii-a enmviem ^alflinjjv^ynEjTjj^^s^^sj^vt'W'aiaaaupinawTtil'u armitvm /navia^nnfiNnniwa\\iwmjmYn>3flnsm'i i^ani iAi.fi. lamm©; lem mnvien^'fnma^n ^^^^^wv^ivi'u^ia^'u^^iii^n^ii wrim<awuHani^Limi lurni^w^w qumsriVlu w.w. lacnei/© laman^jja I§n leulEjmlij^viiuia T.ifnmnTlviiA'UTfa \"A Grammar of The Thai or Siamese Language\" LLeclli ^WNwrnSa^nanVien aiSTafw^au^ijlviif^^ifu u.asfimsSwmnlaa'ueiau dS q v islamlli^a^'wj4'VNanii''a Lrifij , <ni>3 |piTilf vj.ff. ioGn<nJb u1,ill'S 70 AThai Scripts: 730-Year History

,, mm£$m 5,\" mrrm ft) nu n tn:m rriui mw/.wm^nivii^vftrfiXu > iiiivuvm mibpiftij \\ ' ^ ',';. II wdmm ffwh'Jrf?) n Th lirfiutfur) vmvun 'tfnMT)mmivum&mY)7$m& : tiffi&L i —> . 1- i yi . } az/ U1) *y1 1 If I^ 11 / m tfirifam$$vvilnvm>iimiibw77 hY)inii mwnfmijvminr)V)iJUniwhrih7) % Samud Thai featuring Law of the Three Seals written with Thai alphabet in the reign of King Rama I.

/ //, H<£-* it —J -^U! i ? I ?i . m^l^mMfhtk^l^P: !i Ml jrf ^Art»M. wv)mmntinp^m((m mhtifn™ IwMiMnikfnmih}) l^§^|§ . na-a aa*? wTaw (Henri Mouhot) unu^winSinumfmfJTaipra Expatriates in the Kingdom of Siam in the reign of King Rama IV were required to have passports. The above passport belongs to Henri Mouhot, a French naturalist.

item £j°a uineifm vnaytaulyia^nnmmnwvi^aijfVuaa ^afliw^waniiVlvm In 1835, Dr. Dan Bleach Bradley, on behalf of a Christian missionary, bought the plate from i Singapore to publish Thai books in Thailand. Four VI. ft. Ismer/a! years later, King Rama III commanded the v publication of more than 9,000 copies of the royal announcement on the ban of opium smoking. The adi^Vafmii-j u^^^i,1w^ni^^w^vi ,u^ialuiJis;tyi |Pi LYiiJU&isyi'i>3'3'i ,Bnn'3 Thai alphabet has since appeared in both handwritten and typed forms. The handwritten form T.tfflinwimtalh'urmwjj'w ^aiJ^nn^'i'i iSa vm.<ft. lam^is astmvnsmvisiml^ varied according to the writers and the typed font featured modified forms to suit printing. msuNunlhi^iaij'vn TfimaYi m leftibeunaTy l#£ni?^w^wib£rnP! <'uaN3 The forms of the Thai alphabet in this period m^n^fm tf a%3 \"vhnauTl'u\" ^imnnii ai.ooo wuii InmviflvimTwsj'mriN'mi remained the same as those at the beginning of the Rattanakosin period in every pattern. The 1/1/wi^itan^n'3lli c u< s ennui umansnTmfl ,ugn£j£ia characters used in writing notices or other royal <pi^^s;<'iu'3U3>i'inua^^iv3 ] documents were called the \"scrivener letters\". The N3>i'VNa Thai alphabet and writing method underwent 1/ several modifications in the following reigns. v fta^iforiN&rimij efomi tvnrmienu ?iJ&Tw,^i'U'ijav3an^? lyi£j^3l'm'ni,2ueii£j3la a/ ty ot3 €>3§1^iJiiiJijan^ifi^i!j^l>3niJS§T£jn^>3^nIni <uri^auili u< uasmflufliw^wfraS ni?iil^nuiJ^N3?ilanHilwivi^i\"^wnijni'3^) ,wjj'w diiijni'Jilfiiiil&Tfu^inani^lnEJ IviChuimanc^ tiJm^iilusiviimwIh'uiYn ^la^iwJmemiGcmfjaanvn^lhu'lhNa finTa^Vivn^H&ru ii^mliisvmsinNaehrH'uil'u iiariil6nsmLlueiia>a drmaei anWlyia mav^Yillni^wwwvm^a ^^fHmiJsfmriu^m'ua^iri tiJifimilaasYam'affluTnamifflaueiu Iftm&wizXumiwvutiizmwmmar)®!'! V1 vmnufmeh^ 6 mimrm ''^anMiaianmi\" uflwwmirnTiia>3 armilriEj tiVljJ ) v viaeiCla lua^iEjtu'a^^aa-n 5n^1311^3a^? |R1ll^,^,lllla^l^1U9^an'lJ'^^s LYl£Jl H, 1/ <u Wfln^i>alihnmiwanvign£jflih3 ^iifla&jwsinviamftavn^amnanmadvn iiTwrnavl <sL vim^ibsfmf ahfcKsalEjns: maHi^fjum^ninauYi'u armVtriEJ u§c v anii'a <i]aw LYi£j wadu33y£jvn\"invmm^mt:^n/imlhi^naij#i T^nism b i/i vim>3vnnn^0n1i1a'3mil4bil6nai§can^^^ 11 unam^wmmjucmi<L/ £*ei ImitmviNnn^ibiiih^sm^Ejmigcm^anufnttT^1/ 1 <ls V) V-=» *=* 6) 1/ Q-/ I *=±*=i >=i I VI l inn Ivmafu ^ufkifa^ini vnsinyiftml^ma^iadtfi^m^umsii^vmym AThai Scripts: 730-Year History 73

onusosm: <u > i The Ariyaka alphabet was invented by King uimpi -5 a vni°a vn~a^<FTIJiYi'53msw ui', , €^adlu^i,litnniJYii1ni?aiaimiu^3-j Rama IV while he was in the monkhood for the rj purpose of recording Buddhist teachings from Pali. vi1ai0?i^nsinaluiT^im l$nmlEmH^us^3J^Tuein Tei£jm^nin,rni?ri The forms of the Ariyaka letters are similar to the ^Ecem^nni^uiEjnfl 6 vim®°tia$ {fGuaarm (Jean Baptiste Pallegoix) Roman alphabet turning left to right. Used in the Dhammayutika sect only, this alphabet comprises numnvien^u^ 6 mana (Jesse Caswell) WOTmm°tniai,mn u, wman^ 33 consonants and eight vowels. The Ariyaka !* alphabet cannot be used to write in Thai language fiT]^ir\\i^i®ziWf\\r\\m is <mi?nadi>3wein$»'mi.i>sn lliyi^^LiJGwanM'ibwmia^ because it does not have adequate vowel sounds. As well, several consonant sounds were also / missing. The writing method of the Ariyaka UGclh'Uei-N l^Sfiin^t2w^instvi^awnijan^^Q5^a>3^ii^sT 'u<?inI^£jtavNTs; alphabet is as follows: w^niil'UYiiiM'ail an^tnl^e^intum^jj'w T^yn^faani^YiYn^ihswsf 1. Each vowel is placed behind the initial wlvd'h OflUSOSfcirio ^v^iejI^ an^i-uaNaw<ut^laj« consonant; anM?a1^ni;i,fluan^?^>3^iiJ^m^TUfi^i£j^l>3fYijari^'3l'33T'u ^TAn-iavi ^ 2. If a syllable begins with a vowel sound, the I <=* ff^4 4 \"T 4 i Q^ 4<L/ vowel can be used as the first letter of the word; eneo ®1 3. Any consonant not followed by a vowel 13-J3 IN. PI. laeneto l^n^m'^^^W l^mimuajm^ mvmzVI 1/ | Q-/ | performs as the final consonant; 4. If a word has an anusvara sound, the vowel <^ ®1 lllUUll \"-z\" will be used followed by an anusvara. anmwaVmmavil^a-j ^niasw^ajw^ii^adimiiii^mfiinn'u ^SaYmo^ f)l\\iKm$nvQrim\\Y\\t\\3&vv\\ayu^iM<ftiiimMv\\iii°!! u^an^iis^a^arm'jalijfis: SanTOcehvaaanliJ lia ©. ^\"u^^^^i^^iivaHvi^iAiLrnj'B'u^liu is. thLfm^isadvmifh TBerssraWli) raw <FiTin \"aivfta\" raavm I3IKiI6h en. viin^iTqjiiiislwwc'i'as^iwvi^u^^Na'i'itilu^i^ri^ \"nla\" immi TU5J0&1 (nnoa) aiuii nslvasi tilu^iu A74 Thai Scripts: 730-Year History

J&* <$&& ^.^^ - 2*>?**! trr '%fe&&a£M ***** anu^aifjns snamswrorifrnafi «? yi^i^auiilufntnrnmuna msnim'muiNmznifTata' fla msivianaiura msa^m'hNUiMivnfiN'm'w 5«nmiaVlma'ltaaanmwn:HWif u.aVUim3?ijnntanniluni,iluamltavrssNvnai4nim rroimsamireantmlTsa •wisa'asH-STsfmviTsa'aflYl «o uvtam^femlnauYi? Handwriting of King Rama IV. This features pali chants written in Ariyaka alphabet and was given to his son who later became HRH Prince Vajirayana Varoros, Prince Chief Patriarch of the Kingdom of Siam.

w *&n p^ w* *>«; «&r>* *!* ^fy»*t« *pef« *f *ft mow. ^ ^V %-in ny *£* &««*/j ¥0 x^i ifru no1ft Hffl - &pv\"tftoOy U04<H, Xis&fyC!, win^ ^ ^ ^u wy$) unn ifpii *tr *ho; -d<h (fyio n^w 3<no *f**?1* <*S(J anamsvi0n^a^msiniiam®^msjj<angiri6nma|jvn m-jiuauiiyiasfi'ma'S nmriEnw Handwriting of King Rama VI manifesting new writing method the King initiated. This is the play of Ramakien which was written by King Rama II.

onusosuuuinu The New Ihuanm^a^iiecTuein u,asY]aAYnnufliiwuflinNd>3ynn^a>3an^ifn,vm Writing r it i Method Inmviem ifornavi b ^Sv^tsiiwilmyiniian^'aislyiEjl.vijJ malvma The new writing method was invented by King Rama VI. He had observed that the existing writing if method of the Thai alphabet was confusing since consonants were surrounded by vowels and some wu^nn^ianiii,l£ju?/iiM'i1>Yi£jI^fjan ipf£jan ouii5 oijaN3l'53T'ui»2u t enaaYmVlvm words were not pronounced as they were written, especially words without vowels. This made it San^iisauawl'uiiiNjfi'i ilgns'saijenwLinj'ims in$?haamsa>al,N^>aninil difficult for foreigners to learn the language. v In his new method of writing, King Rama VI livi^^ffnj^ < , Lii)'uii'3^rf^i^£jinuYin^i m^ibsfm^insuiJijIviaJ modified the Thai alphabet and the writing method u^(li ui,Lei^'ii>3 by placing a vowel behind the initial consonant, t^aHS?iJ^m^iutvi^nsi tnnii^n>3iJWiJi?^L^£jinunij < oous; gtauiiJaEusnu both of which were on the same line. > iAiirnj Consequently, he created new vowel forms which were suitable to be placed in the same line as ^awanjVmiai.cciTimyq nmui v consonants. The forms of consonants and tonal ifv3 ifiN3tviSanan^^ ln£j^3TLin'3>3^'uIni ,unf marks remained unchanged from those of the TeiaS Rattanakosin period. The writing method can be <, summarized as follows: ^na^raswa&niflei 1. The existing consonant letters and tonal marks were used; @. Hvmajmc Tntuanei iviwawi^jjnn^n 2. The forms of vowels were changed and they m. iignilawhuetasfh ImTmunuiimOufh 6 Im^aui^anuskim were placed behind the initial consonant on the ) same line; anTnisuijmvisJatfarwmafi b n u 3. Like English, a space was put between each word; words did not run one after another as before. ian'Bfmu.Gna However, the new writing style of King Rama VI l) <w^^3u^l,San?^3lJ'3^^y•lcl^stl,^san <u^^s^,mlJUl>l,^^ Iflm^gmaVuimfmNynsm was not used for writing royal documents. After creating this new alphabet and writing method, he IV ^<=\\ 61 | ff'rf si lrf\\ <l/ i a-/ presented it in an article published in a journal to test people's response. However, because it did fnnjjuaw v^^a>3^^>3ri^l',ol'ULVi^i iJi'3n^i)^iAii'3m,,&'3>3'3s;asnpii^u G ivnwu ) not look familiar, the new method was not popular among the people. The method therefore was practised among court officials for only a short period of time. AThai Scripts: 730-Year History TT

oniisaueoouwa U. wuaaDnsiu Thai Alphabet in ^unil?S(,yi^H^^iiwi^1ajniiviun^L^£JWUTunai?£Jili^tri«ri'i^5;ij;iu^n the Government of Field Marshal ^flimUulEJinEJYHimni'l \"IfSUEJaN\" stS nuiwIfaf^uUjim^riem u, ^lliSni'atiJiij < ui,i,iJ^N3T'^j'U5'3'aw1,yi£jviPii£jlii Plaek v rvl I I misnlvm TflsAvuvisnwpm lsJlia'3ri'i'iT.MLln Lri£jfinni ,uT«ws^«^n ,wrin^T %<ft,® 1 HI iJismWl'Ml^anw^l.yiEiuiJiiT.visJ I5:lyS^^fllJ^^^^plmas^ |pn1^d^3iJ^nlun^'^aTUl,l,^\" \"jlsonc L^unm^nlnij Tfl&Sviani.nm'WNainifl® ®$u Substantial reformation of the Thai alphabet s 1/ It If during the Government of Field Marshal Plaek <s>. Yi(}qi°Buzm sfsf ®iuu miawnmunn Ivtaeuviiam^ m® $\\i uas Pibulsongkram took place around 2485 BE (1942 wiaan 6)m(?filia 6rjpi <w&j£]{]5 6n<ajJuei'h)'VT AD). The incumbent government was promoting a la. grezmfmlif m<£ en efaaanlil <£ $\\i mriswwnmim^nnija^au 6 ) number of changes in Thai culture and a new Thai alphabet was introduced with the main purpose of ^a eiis; 1 s\\ qq /] rf\\ reducing any difficulty in reading and writing. mmen. a Followings are major changes in brief: s wni , tUv3n£Jussa'i'UN3iiJ3snnf'u la\\flmne)?mavi 5iJfiiil'3N3l^t,^£j 1. Since there were repetitive sounds among mj^auiiaTi^tJU I^mavn£/iiHiinikia\"^U3irif|(?) t°ou the 44 consonants, they were reduced to 31. The 13 eliminated consonants were m, fi, w, &i, Q, £|, we] nun WarieD wandw,5, «n, tu, pi, VT; 2. Out of the existing 35 vowels, five were qni5 kin a eliminated because they had repetitive sounds, which were 1, t], J]\"|, r\\ and r\\~\\; 3. The writing method was adapted to be msvmwnirisfm .ml^mii n^^inermnTU easier to write and read, especially in the words from the Pali and Sanskrit languages. A78 Thai Scripts: 730-Year History

lu^usmma^aimmufikiwitmSo luaiuvi 2 mcTfnfijj 2486 us; inulyiwWuBJjpii IflumiLtasmpi \"tbutTwImej mj^ViflanluffPi\" iTunio^BijWunnjJ^Bs U93 nvi viivi yijj ctTunwlu mj^Vmiajjfl mmilti fiitHifl fm^Vieiafilu wain ubswYi vTulpi'MJj^iJjsnifimaiu HOUUItlllJuHtrNfl muinilu^fliJnia^lviyvi^njjui^vnn uunJuTBUBwlvifj ctupimviuTisiiJuvinnfnuviinuffiupuliiiJnnwn jnvmuwa'ufliuflsunBB^mmiasiJisnimwtmmlM 1HMlviBlliu^lflv1]J^BUBlJflNJJ\"linmifn IflWQlVnSYItJ* iJiinmfmeiniB^iuYlvrd ^\"lei'UB'lvivnuwnnnmSflus: ImjuJuwjjwjjBunt^aiJluYin^piBfilij w?i1jj uaswfi mMvn fia uifjlwbiiu \"MEjinu lJisBiumjfni uirj Ivy mi!ipi«BfiI)JiTfl ' itlfiuiaiJigifHf IwmjjjjHNB auuiumifiu mjmmibnm u.e. iteju isfjinvHwina macul fnijj^iu rmuffiuiti TiBwoVlYiBvi'ibtJw'm uimwtn iTMBjjmvm u-nrmpnu crVmuffm' Iiimmi fn?fliffUBJJVItT'Jfliafll4HM4 ,BB^lvlBlll?lfl^fl1f»SlJftMll?»8i U.i.i. icnicn mffjjffi vntnsua uuuifi mmmj nidumwnflnviBflnaiinHfnuflnalviu'luvniJHui. nuni menj.vi. Bflfliuuvi lias vnoaVu ynYIuvuj ^DNWfl J. w2j^>yDC» >J. num? v>nmumi^Yn?fuflniwcr<Dfl?fmim3iJjiivm:^i eiBfilw wpilw utuwn njuu^mti'luj'iu&flBJ'JuinmJU majjfliQiinofnvNnJujiiPfilntJ fmu maim* a ufls 1 uifjfnfljjuen 24 UfltnfJU 2486 1 , an ,j)?Q5'M l$i?ijmtilfijiJ'Sia'5Ju1.viiJlu6(3TtJ'n^ajj'wa iJ. •wiiaa<afmjj itluuiEirmuun? A government's announcement featuring new writing method initiated by the government of Field Marshal Plaek Pibulsongkram.

Sa kwik braun jaks dgAmps ouvaj £>a leizl etag dguilailonkoin ju:mv3:siti baerjkok onGkoh.«HULfiL .v ErsIty strindharadsvaratanasuia mjuanw^tfu uuijanimmu'ifil uasuiJuan^vmyimsinyiamlhmsiSnadifo^^ The Roman, Devanagari, and Thai fonts invented by His Majesty the King for use in various occasions.

oniisnsoUsouxJ vnnnriaml^msmadvh f^maiMim iSuv^^vnnwlLmlylliri'ma'i HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej or King Rama IX <U 1 loves reading. Appreciating the value of books, His 0>aiJrin{]iJTivnrnmivmsvi§nmira>3 uei^'ai^^miil^^lM'luiiijan^iliifjt'fila^ Majesty has often told the people around him how important reading is. The king is not just a reader; Aajjvbuna? wt3uLn ifiInI^Slu£jfiif^^imanlii!j he has written and translated many books to give knowledge to his people. With the world making u ni^ibslm^wiJijanira^a^msinyiamfhmn^iadwi fast inroads into the creation of a \"global village\" ad\"N bn<?nw via computer, His Majesty has been quick to experiment with computers. 1/t i i His Majesty also paid great attention to fonts u^n^nv3snnv^^s^vinnwfflua^^^vi?'3ili\"li^^anT^f'uLvijJ iwaHmwmlfatfrn and word processing. In 1987 he began to use a ^^^^ 6 vi1ai,vlaiJ?iJik>3an^is^a>3/inttn1>yi£j umflunn^em^iJinjimassnAGnEJ font editing software called \"Fontastic\" and ^ \"Resource Editor\" to design Thai and English fonts of different sizes. His inventions included the ^ianmfmamiwlbmf)1a^a^vni,e)a? iwaib~Iij^u^aniivlww$a^ae;i''N G Bhubing and Chitralada Thai fonts, in various sizes, ] from the smallest to the largest. These fonts can be used to type both Thai and Pali. I^^ri?N3aii>3liliun?«^ajj^it^almail^sliiluiJijany''3'Hla^i,1ijnii OTlUSo His Majesty has also created Roman font for FIOUUUOIPIOS Vila vJauei (font) vienamiei vT>a mil uan Trivia anWhaTu typing English, Sanskrit, Pali. He also wished to create Japanese font. He then studied and animynuifil uasaVian^? flhrnehfiam w.pi. kasfeno ^am^vm vnweiaa^H designed the font for Devanagari using a computer Tibum&j \"Fontastic\" uas \"Resource Editor\" ibsfm^anttVlmuwS^iliiiimias machine to type Pali transcription in his lunAem 6 L°au uuiirnwfl uuiR^aen iilwiu ^wan^nnHwjJw/inirilvmua'a ] composition of \"The Story of Mahajanaka\". In addition, each year, Thai people have been fjVHm u w<n i i*n u i alii a n ?i i u granted a computer-generated New Year card tunaKnaa-n v^isijnyia^tl^vj^st^nadvTiir>3yi^>3iJ^sl»luiJijariid'^T'3ayu Hj as designed by His Majesty as an auspicious start of the year. mam^Hw^wfnina^nqi* finnauanqei /ninina wa^SmsiiwrlvHs cnn^ianirerijiluanlna ua~f1a°i <R^aYn>3il^li^a1nmi>Ynuim €>auim£nn qj q av old ninm?ibsfmfuiiiia>ii^T,vi£jau^ ItQiitm ava^a^^Tt^a? maHw^wniniifnin una luwinimwustla^ \"wsuvnmin\" \"uarmrm tmi)an^ilri£j^vj^siiiriaiJil^^t^t^iadvTilliri?>3il?^^^'$ u< u< ^m^unmHibsnaiirmaanuiJi] \"a.fi.a.\" a'lvniimni^rnmmib^mwiilrm mlannaiuimmviNBnebiJ AThai Scripts: 730-Year History 81

'O- • \"'fjf ff W*6 1 J!XaWwMR0 imiuimseigjgnwsTnti

ft -, • I *i •*% anunionusFiaG nooriufriEJ Chapter 3 dialectal Thai Alphabets AThai Scripts : 730-Year History

-^^/^ mm 4 /nu'luTmbzflwm ^H&'Bn^fin anaiJ^swnwtNYisfi^n'S'SttYi too The Chang Kham Temple in Mueang District, Nan Province was constructed by the governor of Nan in 1406. Formerly named Luang Klang Wiang Temple, it is where the Chang Kham stupa is situated.

' oniissssuaiuin OniiSSSSU^lUUl i,2nani*^'nHa!Jl'uyia^n ,u/ii |fii,vi'ua ,,ua>3il'3^tri iPi1,riij The Lanna Dhamma Alphabet was used in the SJ North of Thailand which is otherwise called the T.uinnmmfimfluaimisrnlh'uui au'UHsn'U'ii ai^vT^uiin^Tnarm'ai-janj \"Lanna Kingdom\". It is believed to have been dS <v created by \"Phraya Mengrai\" of Chiang Mai by Tu \"nut wm^tm^i^inaimn^nivil/inj^vila^vi^^i^ulnif^^imluiii y\\m. siboo I^miJaTmitilmlmEm nfwa-ju Ckjm!j£miiuTLien u, etimian mzwiweii modifying the ancient Mon script. Influenced by the Mon Kingdom of Haribhunjaya in 1600 BE (1057 u,6Cibin£]tuflAi3i1niJix3Vian tiiw \\)lSni\\)13i71USlJLnsrinLi ° ^vn^sfbym AD), the form of the alphabet consisted of curved v)lSniynSOniUmnf& toto lines and circled shapes. The letters were Savnm&uria \\)1SDS:LK)]umi[Ba\\)(?n3 ^vitVi commonly written on palm leaves, long-shaped toGn ancient Thai books, mulberry paper and fold books wm\\v\\u uecleim&vns v)lSn3Flbl0m ^wtViutu iiiwifna^iwsii^lh'U'U'i made of mulberry paper, and on some stone mwvwvuz^S^in^ai£jN3iiJuss;S <wWj'uini?adiN3?iisiij'3m cn~ ua^anii^s %3£i inscriptions in Lanna. Examples of the Lanna Dhamma Alphabet were Chao Wat Bariparn Bhikku Ani*malifinnunijan^iiba>3anw^ 20 Buddha Uthan Khata 1 Inscription , Inscriptions^ , engraving on Metal Bell in Chiang Dao Cave 22 and , an^?s?^^^inniaiulvidl^iTn^nvi1a^i?vili'n5iiJJYiiN3'»Ai'5\" ,VNris iFti?i <ui stone inscriptions found at Phra That Chang Kham ^NHSuantvitflml^nan^inG^'Cm armisiia-j Vila armis'nijlhmri matw?hN3 23 v Temple in Nan province, which feature the most lil^inanii^s^'5wf1tm'5Vi9inadlufii |pia?nu wiltirm armisTawaGnu beautiful and the clearest Lanna Dhamma script. It a£j~Nvbn«inw ^iilhuuilualflaNaKanms^jjIhuvn consists of the fully-fledged developed Lanna Dhamma Alphabet in terms of consonants, vowels, and writing methods, which remained the same as that of the ancient Mon script used in the Bagan ngdom. Mostly, the Lanna Dhamma Alphabet ila^T^ 6 ^wiiaTm^s^^lhrnnmSu/n^Lna was used to record Buddhist teachings in ) th the Pali and Thai languages. As wa~/iTwilymfmi,vma aniras'aijjlh'u'ui \"ut^s; l? imvWviGnnj'l'u, > 15 50030 ill, it was employed in recording the northern Thai dialect among Lanna anmi^n?lhuuiluaw^i^i^3T^'3''m v^sirm . ) fo6)SSc communities. Most of the stories recorded m££naT>3?1^WVmi^m>3ll?11JlhTIJVn££n£jin \"MO? 530^50 wv^illa^vil/iaj'flEAImln ^llm^lhiJ'n'BsiChin for the sake of Buddhism are Jatakas, offerings to temples, astrology textbooks, medicine textbooks, poetry and Khao Sor or Lanna ballad, etc. The Lanna Dhamma Alphabet had its origin in the Mengrai dynasty. After OS QS OS :,)/,. 7,00)6 S-COTDfoJ^O'l G£G?|3 g?!R < conquering Phraya Yiba of Haribhunjaya, ivmenncnsnu anri^Nnmaiarm'ssrs^en'U'ui King Mengrai moved his capital from mi nrlH a din a i Chiang Rai to the newly-established cities HI of Kumkaam and Chiang Mai respectively. S alun^fn? The Lanna Dhamma Alphabet prevalent in vil fi o«j •S'tjlill'S tfl tfil a >3 n? the Haribhunjaya Kingdom was then 1 aaenTiia>3naNmmiw1a>aaTuuTanen?j employed as a communication tool among iilwilnarm-ss'n^a'i'u'u'i luavnnsrnik fmimusms^vro the Lanna people. amSuwibsfmsnumzwvisiilTia^mstnwaiYm/^'im AThai Scripts: 730-Year History 85 An inscription discovered at the stupa of Chang Kham Temple Mueang District, Nan Province, features Dhamma Lanna script. It mentions the renovation of the assembly hall in 1548 AD.

Moreover, the Lanna Dhamma Alphabet was uarmnu OnUSSSSUcTIUin ^Ciayisy^anaWilmuiflviYiaiJaipfej adopted by Tai ethnic groups both in Thailand and wfntAmLeCuanihaYmlyiEj %nSa?mananwsT3NaTmnliJT>mt,eV3 n 1,1m nan mi beyond. These groups of people named the nGwnHi^a onfiwus',ua^ ,ui»a^ i°rm aYm'al.ymla ^axanawiniwuslYilmila^ adopted scripts after their own communities. anWlnmfmiuaa^if'uui Mfw6ripi£jnui u< ensnimifs)ib~',o'i oa'u?m ^a^nsm Examples include the Tai Lue script of the Tai ethnic group in Xishuangbanna in Yunnan province ib^isiAraib^imiaiiluff^mi wasanfcKasrijjasnu lu/ii^sTuaamStiva of China; the Tai Khoen script of a tribe in Shan ivmaTia^ihsivmlriEJ State in Myanmar; the Dhamma script in the city of an^^s??w^inuiwniiHaiiYia^nuj4ni,ilui,ipi'i |fia <u'!iT>3uiu umilafk'm Sri Sattanakhanahut in the Lan Xang Kingdom in mmYi.?\\. iss^m ?^in@lu^m£uul$aanib£nnmdkj« aiTim an \"h In a was Lao PDR, and the Isan Dhamma script used in vm^ian^ivmnviwiuSatf lHfinnTMiNnT3i1aunT?aauanm'fia>aEm ni^Hanm northeastern Thailand. STaNghmn^Vmfl^^nllhsaSUGn Villa The Lanna Dhamma Alphabet was used for centuries until 2483 BE (1940 AD), when the vIf 1 %r government issued the third announcement of adi^fkia-j {f^^ifu'u5 |Fnijj ,w£ji£jiw <n^na^luan^'3S'5UJ^i'uui aWlvtu State Convention concerning language and books in connection with citizens' responsibilities, €^i.iluni?anTni5Qwn5^^TnaN3fiuliinan^?^ia^?l^llifijni?efiiria^^ajJi prohibiting the teaching and learning of dialectical alphabets. Consequently, the use of the Lanna anmsnnlhuui SvmnjTiic g^is 11I T^EjSeTn^ruuiltnilm^nA^ Dhamma Alphabet was temporarily interrupted. nenmOuwifnjmcen!,§>a enu&nsluanmsraN&nuunmi S an<^ ?il wasmau Later when society became more open, the study I^awunamTfrnfiyiniMmymu; ihsnaulnfj&n^w eno en WGC&nsaau d en of Lanna Dhamma Alphabet was resumed for the purpose of the literary and cultural preservation, LJmfm^irafutjnei u$nKT>#6ifa ( / ) uvm u^sfi^rat^^jfi^uyN ®>o en Ha o-d and has continued to the present day. efnviiiian^iisija^an^isiiwaiTuuifieiTiJfi^nijan'ij'jis an ml, via The Lanna Dhamma Alphabet is composed of tmnwnm£jN3ti>^^fff^ oH'us;^nGJi^^i.^Ej tu'HaijliliTwdT'3 1 ^c^au ? ItSjiwut 42 consonant forms and 38 vowel forms. Both Ihuvisha ghvifuenasnei i^nuli^i^i^iiQWi weimfnUij1&ns§h>a •nvvwvuz consonant and vowel letters have curved and e^neHa!Jyun(?HTnwanjm^eimema circled forms. Final consonants are written as subscripts. The vowels are divided into 30 dependent vowels and eight independent vowels. There are no tones; instead the Mai Sat mark (/) is used. In addition, there are all ten digits from 0-9. The writing method of the Lanna Dhamma Alphabet is similar to that of the Thai alphabet, except that the second consonant of a consonant cluster is placed beneath but if it is the \"J, it is placed in front of the first consonant. Vowels are placed in front of, above, underneath and behind consonants. Final consonants are placed beneath the word. However, in a word consisting of a vowel placed underneath, the final consonant is always put next to the first consonant. A86 Thai Scripts: 730-Year History

uuua^nrsm'isn'lu'wsaiJsiNim iMuuusNeilnmfluanaTCTSNa'iuui lhsnaumwmtuafoaanmnmui^Nriimamtaanu^ V1 Ecclesiastical edicts engraved on Samud Thai in Dhamma Lanna script, under the drawing of Prince Siddhatha rode out of the palace on horse back in quest for the noble truth.

SuibseiwmmsSu mulmamsuu aii/iaiwa-a ^vneienmi •Bwaawa^m lemsinsuvna mamari-alemmsiviimwNn'n'B nwiltjmnnj'BEJ v*m. «bo*> The stupa in Phra Yuen Temple where a standing Buddha image is enshrined. Situated in Lamphun Province, the temple was formerly named Phruetthimahasathan Temple. It was constructed by King Dhammikaraj of Haribhunjaya in the ,h century AD. 12

onusWnuiu Fak Khaam OniiStifninU vilafiilanamlavivlayi ani^riylnmri t2ua1nwitei,,rmvm^ ,nuiJ34'Buwom1av3?ii$hN3 6 iJUflen^nlnluaTmiffYslhmri I^CbilarmtuaLas ] The Fak Khaam alphabet (aka Thai Lanna anij'3Q5lna^£j>3nijan^^9iuuuu Ita armVlviEJ amnalTjym trl £j >3 u^l #Tq eTn id-^ alphabet as it was used in the Lanna Kingdom) was commonly inscribed in stone to record different stories. The forms and the writing method maani*?flmnjj are similar to those of the Sukhothai alphabet. Its an hi eTmnw uni^Tm^vmlhuan^iYim^uvmri'uiT mssmmfii^ tall and slightly curved letters look like tamarind pods, so the alphabet was called Fak Khaam 91 <U (tamarind pod). nw1^ttvi>3aimi^n^^iunil^^ujJi^uvJua\"i,w£jtLWVN^^^Yis«iaunlfris^ni'3>3^ The Fak Khaam alphabet was influenced by the Sukhothai script brought in by \"Phra Sumon 3 Thera\", a monk from Sukhothai. In his endeavor to convey Buddhist religion, Phra Sumon Thera Yi\\,UQ<si%v<i\\v\\u ebaihnn.nviahri'ul'u fiai^lSriOFlWSofclU' ^vneisnvm created a stone inscription at the Phra Yuen 24 in Lamphun Province in 1913 BE (1370 hilnln^a^n w.pi. ©^©m Temple ^si^i1ni^^^sSntfluvi^n^iurinv3Lansi^^6fi <FrajtLgi^(,2 <u«^i^n1ni, <wijN3 AD), which is the oldest stone inscription of Thai as oy script found in Lanna The inscription states that viamfi£ni,YhuuYiiJ>3ijanmiuwa^ King Kue Na of the Lanna Kingdom invited Phra ^nuuiluY3oa3T!JTjav3 Iw^;i,^ifia'uiI^£j !w^^ajjutri'5s ^saflflaasn^iiuavnetauvtila Sumon Thera from Sukhothai to direct all monastic ceremonies in Chiang Mai. v rsswijre.': ma^nw1yuviN3aimi^n'iaiuunw ifiinjJiJ^i?tnuilfi'i L<?i^'3i;rin^ wsfnaYiumNvnmll iwa^am-nn^a^vmNaTjavn^aiuuwirm 9) 9 9 99 •fraiiluflfcrn u^^isaiuu^^lwlliil^'i'in'unma^^n'i^Yfi^tjri'aijj 3-nriau mrnswsm^lwlliaminei f>m^>mn'vn^inauTt#Cmw) msaNUir^^iiuvnsan^n^fonmija'aefojym msmnavn^sN , iiun^liJiila^Turm mauajuflmsaimn^s:3nnm^nalYi€>a Ui 9J 9 s <u 9 <\" 9 m^ii^snWlilmilaNH^lvmlbfij uj u awuji: J^um uvirj- ^uu*oui*«i*^w.fji->— -—»-— , --— t -. ~ Phra Yuen (Standing Buddha Image) Temple Inscription AThai Scripts: 730-Year History 89 inscribed in Thai script in Sukhothai period and Pali by the wish of Phra Sumondhera who was invited to Lanna Kingdom in King Kuena reign. The temple is in Lamphun Province.

Another evidence of the use of fak Khaam uan^inu i.Sai.ill&Jijm^iitiluiJijanifri^n^iw^tnitLn^ei^trin'n^iJ alphabet was the stone inscription of kings of the Mangrai 25 1954 BE (1411 AD) found Dynasty from in Phayao Province. ai^ngmlliii iilaniii^n^n^luHsi^ilnvian^neili'aS'fiin^'fi^iEJ'pi^niJ The Fak Khaam alphabet consists of 41 consonants and 22 vowels, which can be put in front of, behind, above and beneath a consonant. an^i^rmib^iui s^© il i.il'uad'Na-nn T^m«vm^iJwLiim^njm^a^arm'5 m 11tfninN — —The two tonal marks mai ek and mai tho ^m^x3?iJam^uiia>3an^ri£ja^^I v have the same form as those currently use, while tab efo <, LiriniJit;ni? the digits are the same as those of Lanna Dhamma tjrr!J V •\" wKW°auz cna3ar)mftn°BiMMmv\\u® s^© -ail iiJamrm^a^snarm-s alphabet. u®r)'&vu,z\\,muuim'ui<s Yr§>ananih>3 cnuais u isio ill Slfnwci^miiinnii The writing method was as simple as that of th present Thai. Accordingly, the kingdom adopted Fak envninTamansnmvm^ i§3 ill Ha iramanfliami.anTJCUEjriflt'n €>aw Khaam as the official uuu^#ni,Pi alphabet used state ^iJanH^tBuilEJiniian^KslYiEjluif^^im a cija>3anM'a^rn ounw < iJ affairs. The most complet SDCi^'cK .V..CJ J mil uuu ivi H auniien lainj a>3 aninsim Iiuw Fak Khaam alphabet wa the one discovered in the mmlhuan^iis^a^aniri£fn <inw Sanirfusivi Sana sin ti stone inscriptions at Chiang Man 26 in ^im fiaiTJEmsrn iaimEjnjmcem gnuenasnemu LTiembm^ Temple Chiang Mai Province. / lnniiiii,^^iiniJ^^^^irriivNS aj oo<u^li'u we^wmuw^iecneiin^i m m mnsnw5 tfqj \"bus uil sil ana°u >3 w an afch^linenN Lua^nnani^fTmnw wa1i^i!mlS 6Bii 6ffau vhtvi ^^LlalmT^n1vI^lllLQnanl=)''^^lw^^a^aG'l'l'5l<url^^31^'Bn^'3 •fraviannu ^LQnaniiif^nijn^^PiwiJifu^a^i.rii^^ijluif^^ir'u ibirmadl'u Flcll tob ^iVi^Ud vnsnomi(BaoiJU . BGtfPtl isimiiimhrni s>ce<sv 34fl?*mja£tm?si£i 1! Inscription of Kings in Mangrai Dynasty, written in Fak Khaam script in 1411 AD in the reign of King Sam Fang Khan of Lanna. A90 Thai Scripts: 730-Year History

. i vmufluan Chaing Man Temple Inscription, written in Fak Khaam script in 1581, tells about the construction and renovation of Chiang Man Temple from 1 296 to 1 581

1 arsv. ^iuwyiEiwnKlumsim*mB?nsmn iwa w.pi. to** Inscription of the Reverend Chao Khru 27 discovered at Phra That Phanom Temple in That Phanom District, Nakhon Phanom Province. Silaphirat ,

oniissssuoaiu Isan Dhamma OniiSSSSUOcnu v Alphabet til ,uariM'^ ,nHadlunel^',!JU Bii lyiyl <uij1i'3Ui^ <uu^ u< The Isan Dhamma Alphabet was used by Pi^U3JunlTjN3€^l,ua^^i,ilu'n^ ua>3anmifn?STU<BiN3 %niwtn>3ij1nm/ii^STuaan people of the Tai ethnic groups living in the Mekong basin, mainly the Lan Xang Kingdom with laErnvmaTia^ibsiymTna Tfl£j£i?m&nen>3admNa>3fl1aflunfmviflVi1ai£ja>3 its centre in the city of Sri Sattanakhanahut, or Luang Prabang in present-day Laos. The Isan /v Dhamma script is a contemporary of the Lanna vien^msu\"!^ ai5ntfuf ^il'3^ <,0'isil L^?JiJ'3S',Bi otfUeml<uif^^iru iSuan'trniwsmEj Dhamma script of the Lanna Kingdom in the Thai n\\i a n irs s-na-j In vmi I^£j£niJam^iu^w£mj'imsu,a£ei'3£ eiaaen'uamj'ns Kingdom. Its consonant and vowel forms and the writing method are exactly the same as those of ^ wanu uuia ifi £j <ei n si \"a n a i the Lanna Dhamma script asTuliii tCluan^^^adluan^tltJiniianwiwanjIii'a'iEuu^'ariM'isi'aJj^'iuu'i Prof. Thawat Punnotok, a scholar of Thai lumrnvma^a^ihavmlriEj I^ammsTmii lemjaYiswa^nnanmNanjIirntu dialects, claims that the Isan Dhamma alphabet 43 <U was from the same family as the ancient Mon alphabet and the Lanna Dhamma alphabet of u^^fiinn^flnyvia^^nnanw'aS'i'aJj^nuu'ianria^viU'a I^wriWalwimri^ail'u northern Thailand. He postulates that the Isan Dhamma alphabet was directly influenced by the fmasnaijmimfl&fiJiwurs^N^asjeNifiN wa~ai3^ii3^iinnjlhuan^isu,iiij ancient Mon script which was propagated via the Lanna Dhamma alphabet of the Lanna Kingdom. Nan/timfu Users of the script were assumed to have been uarmnu uni^im <3in>avh'ui,^a'ji aninBii^a^nuw'VNWunni'awi^nn different groups of people who had adapted the ancient Khmer culture and, consequently, might v have been more skilled and familiar with the writing method of the ancient Mon script. an^1s??w^^un^^^3lm?via^^adYl^^^/^lf1^,v^ua <, |PI LYl£JI^lJW^'url'1^3 Some other scholars believe that the \"Isan ^Ja^3ll'3^l.yl Dhamma alphabet\" evolved from the \"Lanna Dhamma alphabet\" due to the familial relationship aimn^n?^iu^i^anYia^vin^^N3LSuwsaijmav3ijn^nnlu^3T^'wist^iI'VN5?ina'3i'B between the two kingdoms. During the reign of wluiN'a^ni^niIiJunuas^>3?inQ^n?aniaiTiin^i>3anan^nnw^sii^^'3nii'3n \\®m$ King Bhothisal of the Lan Xang Kingdom between u^viWlil^amd^iJgn^imSa^^vd bo f\\um maMmmzwnuwmmz 2059 and 2093 BE (1516-1550 AD), the king A<L/ 9^ 0-» qy 1/ married a princess from the city of Chiang Mai of u^^ii?ii?witw!Jti,w ,w'3^ <tAiYi5«i^un^yi5pi^niiv3^ma'imi^n'?^i u< o in a v^.<pf. the Lanna Kingdom. They had a son who became 0'i'3 \"King Setthathirath\", who reigned over Chiang Mai briefly, from 2091 to 2093 BE (1548-1550). After faobb iJt\"naiinij?iii^^'iN'usrinv3i> |pi1aaji^ oua^rf^aa'3ai£ui^n'3 via^iniArsa^i the decease of King Bhothisal, King Setthathirath returned to Sri Sattanakhanahut of the Lan Xang I ^sai^ii^lliriiN3a^LHna^ianiit^ivi^>3^a>3i,^£j'3lviwuss; < ilia's a Ha Kingdom. Accompanying him were a group of scholars, along with the Emerald Buddha image, a vN'5\"'3 golden Buddha image called Phra Saegkham, and Buddhist teaching books to propagate the faith in vnsm v the Lan Xang Kingdom. hf£H ,imsri1b'i ,if ^aNiKim>3maN3i5a^ij^viwlu?~vm'3 vi.fi. lao©;® AThai Scripts: 730-Year History 93 dS If aim5juw^ummnmta~m~wYnn<ehi^ Yn>3vn~wmfli6miNimaimn3mlhu$iN3an$iLi ^nnayis^^Yii^p(i^unu^sfiin^lfw^u5riiv3L^1aciJi^?^vi'i'i>3sa^'3i ,,aiN3 ,?i OS ahisKJsnNaerm f'aaT^nnirmnKadT^i'VNTWsrm

Based on the familial relationship between the vufimiluaimT^n?lhu$i>3yHniu,nYi3iei llmri v)lSnUUv)lULUS°UjnSSU OI71c3cUinF) tSa>ai>l£j<a?mym isutlNvnmvri'B d<£ia wei^nu y*.?\\. (somen was two kingdoms, it is possible that the Isan Dhamma alphabet was influenced by the Lanna Dhamma adlu^i^f^niam^imi.a'ulvm Liluvianrm£iuimlliadn>3vm>3.n aiumni alphabet. The Isan Dhamma alphabet was used for anu^T^Han^^s^jjaanunanawEJ^^t^Tl^sana^n'H^ad^viin^ im.pl teobm recording Buddhist stories and literature. V The Isan Dhamma consonants were fat and anvif'ijnT^tm?vfaTiJ^av3anMis^^aainL4jnwi^/iifi^si <uaani> ft£j>3i1 viua round, similar to those of the Lanna Dhamma iia^ihsiyiWlyia auCmsnvdn an^^saEJT.u?niTBrna ,w^s;mI,wsaTa'3nM>3i,ilu,i}'3>3 script. The notched heads were preserved along with the ancient Mon alphabetical forms which ai comprise both complete consonants and subscripts. In the Northeast, the latter were called naimifmlrm'SiN ua^LLwaris'wai>',ui^T§>iai'ui^LVi , < <ufii |pi^^'3'uaarii,a£j^i,vs'ua \"Tua Fueang\" which were similar to those of the ui,i>^ Mon and Khmer. There were a total of 38 ^ai^L2um^Wan^^siiJjaann€N3L2uan^?aivif'iiirn^nLla>3?iQrii>3^^siNris consonants. flnmmmviaTm$T^iluij1nm/nfiec.m^ For vowels, the Isan Dhamma alphabet mswvisfnGmnavisin.nnmLan.nmn.niJfl'\"i>3 e consisted of eight independent vowels and 20 ) %/ dependent vowels. Like the Lanna Dhamma writing ?iluiJii^yaj^u^a>3an»?s^ijaannmi llanwvcnauij <uila*4 <Fi^nEj<Fi^>3nij if method, these dependent vowels can be placed in umanmsrs^lhmri I^ijYnwnanMm\"wivi^nueis'3iJri'3>3',ija>3ariM'3^anjIii'aiEU front, above, underneath and behind consonants. V a/ There were no tonal marks in use then. wifnjmi,alimi,arw&njmisfl.n5>3 wrnNaaanutlnnii \"^ntvvla>3\" wlfnwm; The writing method of the Isan Dhamma ivi^a'uahwjwanjii.asani^Tjajj TflaCwanjmcvfaa'u md vh alphabet is analogous to that of the Lanna ®iumz°uzi$emmmi%imiu un^GnsaaEmassn^w Teniae aau Dhamma and Thai-Khmer alphabets: using a m£3 d efo Htf EjmSamamaxadihw'ui uasais^aw iao Lvwaumj complete consonant a I fl-man^ uasermvia'a aiuiT3miinfluuLJ£iK initial consonant plac°H ' a line, while a conso a^vifLian^is^a^an^si^aaiu sjanwmsAan£jfla>aniJ cluster was written wi half consonants or anwsra^aTmnuasanwija^tyitj fiawiTqjmclm^ wnilmTwuu subscripts b the line. F imviVi aiuwtfnjuusfnimsrR /Swifnjwsflifllsvilawmij'fl'us consonants v a/ ay a/ also written ' subscripts be fl.3t^nT<3l^liim'Wil UftZViUVli'lS'UZ&l&ZmU'U ^ZlTSYiVWVUZWlWq the line. However, if \\ • the word contained i^vuftinrm Tflina^EmlTLflimyiVi w^nn^VUi£ja'a£ad<lh < a vowel written ~'A - ua''\"N consonant will be used as the em^ia^n^i^^i,^£j ,uliTii ,VNynj'B'u^^itlwi,i»a\"'3i>3iiuii'3'3rf^ en asm final consonant and therefore jjyfavmei s>b eii placed on the line. There j were 16 final consonants in *3 O leti «• d **i rf a^ d ir** - ^mnmsnTstunvn (viann ®) mu^ntnana^si'ajjaa'iu 94 Thai Scripts: A 730-Year History aiaihsnifu w.fl. to©®*\" mavnnsh'attafma'npmfiu mswyistiJ 1 1 S SI , uann^viu matnimaibsTfj^unintniawarmsgi'a'iJ Inscriptions of Tham Suwan Khuha Temple28, mentioning the donation of land, Buddha images and rice fileds for temple's benefits.

I I 1/ **& 4.:*P S* msmtfufrvn aiinasnrafufivn <wvneivma<ju'ja\"i/i aci'mymuwiifla'i<mn«nsnTSfUflvn Tham Suwan Khuha Temple in Suwan Khuha District, Nong Bua Lamphu Province, the site of ancient stone inscriptions.

V £M ^ B^*) *> 3 t^w 2** *\"t > C\\ '. -v «»• ««> *s O 5? o- ^1 5 *> &*3 ctj& p«j r< i ^*(pj~> Is 1 / «N> £ * .. •-/\"nr o - i t# $ i/ j „ foM ** / -vy^ ri? - O \"3 5* 5b 3 ^> 3 , r? A; C 1 . ^; / p >* r < «• \"•. V».~^r\"«,, 2 & '& as P% r ps a jfO £> C s.j +? d > -c I H >y> ' I .*J1 ft Annals recorded in Thai Noi alphabets written on roll of cloth King of Nakhon Chantaburi presented to Phra Kaewboonmee, chief official of Mueang Kwang Ma and too Phra Chai Chompoo.